Thursday, June 7, 2012

Blood Of The Vines: Lord Love A Duck

Wine Goes To The Movies

with Now And Zin Wine and Trailers From Hell

If you are in the mood for an unhinged parody of the beach-blanket-teen-flesh movies of the early to mid-’60s - and when are you not in the mood for that? - “Lord Love A Duck” is where you should go. Duck pairs wonderfully with wine and the movie gives flight to the “groovy” part of the sixties. I expect Peter Sellers to walk into the scene at any moment. The script can only manage to flirt with alcohol, but going on a murderous rampage with a bulldozer suggests there may have been something stronger in play.

Tuesday Weld and Lola Albright play the bikini-beach gal roles to the hilt. Sweaters? Sure you get sweaters! How about a dozen? Try them on - please! Roddy McDowall is a cross between Moondoggie and Bonehead, only dangerous. The music in the beach party scenes is just about the most redundantly cheesy song ever written - one of those “Here’s what showbiz thinks is hip” moments. Mercifully, this time, it’s tongue-in-cheek. The dance performed to that music is perhaps the best parody of the act of sex I’ve ever seen.

While you are viewing “Lord Love A Duck,” try not to crawl too deeply into the fascination with the title - it has probably won an award for awfulness. McDowall’s character calls himself by the name of an extinct duck, in case you were wondering. Swirl that ducky wine and relish the satire before you. If that pairing doesn’t get you twelve sweaters, hold the relish.

Duckhorn Vineyards makes a nice Petit Verdot - among a number of other nice Bordeaux varieties that would pair nicely with duck. They also have a duck on the label, and you have to love that. They also have the Paraduxx line, when one duck isn’t enough.

Duck! There’s more!

Cold Duck - One writer calls it “a cross between grape Fanta, Cranberry Juice Cocktail, and one of those ‘Champagnes’ you need to swallow with Advil in order to circumvent the inevitable headache.” Cheers!

Duck And Wine Festival - Duck, North Carolina is the place for this one. You’ll have to wait for April - that’s apparently when wine season opens in the Carolinas.